The Waxwings are a small family of Northern Hemisphere passerines, known
for their irruptive flocks, soft crests, and waxy spots on their wings.
Widespread in temperate North America is the Cedar Waxwing (left
in this very nice shot by John Butler), visiting a juniper bush. Waxwings
and berry bushes are closely linked; flocks gather to devour one crop and
then, almost mysteriously, disappear to find the next. Farther north, and
spread across the entire Holarctic, is the larger Bohemian Waxwing
(below in a fine photo by Graham Catley). I always think of Bohemian Waxwings
as birds of ice and frost, and Graham's photo (taken in England on a cold
wintry day in February) captures this feeling -- ice clinging to the bare
twigs, contrasting with the soft gray textures of the bird. His shot also
shows well the odd wax-like droplets on the wings for which the birds are
named.

There are just three species in the family: the two illustrated with
photos here and Japanese Waxwing Bombycilla japonica of northeast
Asia. Only the Cedar & the Bohemian have the odd, drop-like, waxy appendages
on the tips of their secondaries; the Japanese Waxwing lacks this feature
but does have red-pigmented tips to the feathers themselves. The purpose
of the waxy spots is not known, and is not apparently linked to sex or
age (except it is lacking in streaky juvenal plumage).

I rather like how Bent (1950) introduced the Bohemian Waxwing:

"The Bohemian waxwing is an elegant bird, a well-dressed gentleman
in feathers, a Beau Brummel among birds. He is not so gaudily dressed in
gay colors as many other birds are, but his sleek and silky plumage, in
softly blended harmonious shades of modest grays and browns, clothes his
shapely form in a most pleasing combination of colors... He is a gentleman
in appearance and a courteous gentleman in behavior, as all who have seen
him in association with his fellows, or with other species will attest...
To most of us, these Bohemians are birds of mystery; we never know when
or where we may see these roving bands of gypsies. They come and they go,
we know not whence or whither, in the never-ending search for a bounteous
food supply on which to gorge themselves."

Another neat feature about waxwings is their very high-pitched calls, picked
out by the keen-eared birder. Those of Bohemians are lower-pitched and
rougher; the really challenge to beginning American birders is learning
to "filter the air" with one's ears to tune in flocks of Cedar Waxwings
(like the group below). For older observers, this is one of the first sounds
to be lost as hearing deteriorates. I remember being impressed with the
late Roger Tory Peterson's "ear-ability" into his '80s; while his eye-sight
had diminished, he still easily picked up on waxwings during Big Days.

The taxonomic relationships of the Bombycillidae remain controversial.
Sibley & Monroe (1990) placed the family in close proximity to thrushes
and Old World flycatchers, and listed three "tribes" of the Bombycillidae:
the waxwings (Bombycillini), the Palmchat (Dulini), and the silky-flycatchers
(Ptilogonatini). The 7th ed. A.O.U. Check-list (1998), while acknowledging
this suggestion, placed them closer to pipits and starlings in a more traditional
position, and considered all the "tribes" to be worthy of family status.
This latter conclusion seems to better emphasize the differences between
the groups. I follow the A.O.U.'s lead on this point, which is also consistent
with Voous (1977) and Cramp (1988). All agree, however, that they are likely
each other's closest relatives, and they are similar to each other in skeletal
characters.

More controversial is the position of Hypocolius Hypocolius ampelinus
of the Middle East. It, too, occurs in flocks and has soft, silky plumage.
Cramp (1988) considers it a subfamily of the Bombycillidae, and so do Keith,
Urban & Fry (1992). I prefer this arrangement, but it is my understanding
that the on-going Handbook of the Birds of the World series will
consider the Hypocolidae to be a separate family and so, tentatively, do
I. This is the position set by Sibley & Monroe (1990) who did not consider
Hypocolius to be near the other groups.

Whatever their taxonomic position, for those of us who live south of
the usual breeding range of any species, gregarious flocks of waxwings
are one of the first signs that summer is over. In Monterey County, the
first Cedars arrive by mid-September and then linger quite late. Their
abundance appears to increase in April-May (with the fruiting of more trees
& bushes?) and a few often linger to the first of June. We were unable
to be sure whether any nest in Monterey County during our Breeding Bird
Atlas (Roberson & Tenney 1983), although there was some fairly compelling
circumstantial evidence. They probably nest here occasionally.